all i need

Looking at last friday's works in progress post, I realize that I still haven't finished any of those things I photographed and intended to complete. I suppose it's been that kind of a week. The kind of a hot summer week in Maine where: I'm psyched I bought a seasons pass to the state parks - which paid for itself in this week alone; the bathing suits, and favorite beach skirts are given a quick rinse at the end of the day and dry just barely in time to be worn again in the morning; dinner and 'big' meals fall by the wayside of all-day snacking and playing; and at the end of the day, we all crash in a big pile of sticky, sandy tuckered out and happy bodies. Good stuff. All I need, really.

I started this little embroidery piece at the beach yesterday morning - inspired by my favorite embroidery book (a perfect beach read, yes?) and some of the lovely beach around me, while my little ones covered my toes in the sand and water. In the good busyness of the beach, there was only the tiniest bit of embroidery actually done - but it was just enough. I finished it in a state of happy exhaustion (from the day, not the embroidery) at the end of the night - sinking into the couch with my sweet while we waited and watched our babes use up the last bits of energy they had left catching moths in the dark. The embroidery has no 'purpose' and I'm not even sure what I'm going to do with it - I just felt like making it, and that was enough. There are plenty of things on the crafty to-do list these days that are full of 'purpose' - quilts for my little ones' beds, Etsy shop updates, holiday craft planning, a gallery show to prepare for, and writing projects (book 2 is officially in the works, my friends). And while all of that is important, and very exciting and definitely fun, sometimes the most important thing to do is to toss the list aside (I'm a firm believer that the ability to toss a list is sometimes essential to the completion of said list), and head to the beach to play, sometimes again and again. A little gathering of inspiration, a little refueling, and a little bit of letting go.

I hope your weekend involves just a tiny bit of list-tossing, too. I'll see you here on Monday.

Comments

all i need

Looking at last friday's works in progress post, I realize that I still haven't finished any of those things I photographed and intended to complete. I suppose it's been that kind of a week. The kind of a hot summer week in Maine where: I'm psyched I bought a seasons pass to the state parks - which paid for itself in this week alone; the bathing suits, and favorite beach skirts are given a quick rinse at the end of the day and dry just barely in time to be worn again in the morning; dinner and 'big' meals fall by the wayside of all-day snacking and playing; and at the end of the day, we all crash in a big pile of sticky, sandy tuckered out and happy bodies. Good stuff. All I need, really.

I started this little embroidery piece at the beach yesterday morning - inspired by my favorite embroidery book (a perfect beach read, yes?) and some of the lovely beach around me, while my little ones covered my toes in the sand and water. In the good busyness of the beach, there was only the tiniest bit of embroidery actually done - but it was just enough. I finished it in a state of happy exhaustion (from the day, not the embroidery) at the end of the night - sinking into the couch with my sweet while we waited and watched our babes use up the last bits of energy they had left catching moths in the dark. The embroidery has no 'purpose' and I'm not even sure what I'm going to do with it - I just felt like making it, and that was enough. There are plenty of things on the crafty to-do list these days that are full of 'purpose' - quilts for my little ones' beds, Etsy shop updates, holiday craft planning, a gallery show to prepare for, and writing projects (book 2 is officially in the works, my friends). And while all of that is important, and very exciting and definitely fun, sometimes the most important thing to do is to toss the list aside (I'm a firm believer that the ability to toss a list is sometimes essential to the completion of said list), and head to the beach to play, sometimes again and again. A little gathering of inspiration, a little refueling, and a little bit of letting go.

I hope your weekend involves just a tiny bit of list-tossing, too. I'll see you here on Monday.

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Greetings! I'm Amanda Blake Soule - mother of five, author of three books on family creativity, and editor-in-chief of Taproot Magazine. I live with my family in an old farmhouse in Western Maine where we raise animals, grow vegetables and make lots of things. I write about it all here on the blog. Thank you for visiting!